


The Trouble with Excuses

by thewightknight



Series: NSFW Kylux prompts and ficlets [26]
Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fandom Trumps Hate, M/M, Pining, three word prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-18
Updated: 2019-07-18
Packaged: 2020-06-30 12:07:53
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,542
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19852858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thewightknight/pseuds/thewightknight
Summary: It wasn't his fault old Ms. Kanata assumed Kylo had a date with his gorgeous neighbor Armitage Hux when he told her he couldn't come to her Tupperware party. Thank goodness Hux was willing to play along. And fake dating was better than no dating at all, right? Yeah. Right.





	The Trouble with Excuses

**Author's Note:**

  * For [wyomingnot](https://archiveofourown.org/users/wyomingnot/gifts).



> This fic is for my winning bidder [wyomingnot](https://archiveofourown.org/users/wyomingnot) in this year's Fandom Trumps Hate. They gave me the prompt from their collection [Timing, Temerity and Tupperware](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/timing_temerity_tupperware). How I turned a three-word prompt into almost 9K of fic is a mystery. Or a miracle. Or both.

“Ah, Kylo! There you are!”

Kylo weighed his options. He was almost far enough away that he could pretend he hadn’t heard old Ms. Kanata. But if he avoided her now, she’d corner him later, and probably at a worse time. Resigned, he turned and waited for her to hobble over to him.

“I’m glad I caught up with you, Kylo. I haven’t heard back from you yet about Friday.”

“Friday?” He cast about frantically, trying to remember what she might be referring to.

“Yes, Friday, you silly boy. For my Tupperware party!”

Now he remembered, and he wished he hadn’t.

“I’ll have those little sandwiches you love so much.”

Kylo stopped himself from wincing, but only barely. The sandwiches to which she referred were her deviled ham. He’d forced his way through one once and ever since she’d been convinced they were his favorite.

“Um, I’m sorry, Ms. Kanata, but I’ve got plans Friday.”

“Oh, really?” She adjusted her glasses, staring up at him. The giant lenses made her eyes look like two marbles floating in fishbowls. “Oh, Kylo! Did you finally do it?”

“Um. Yeah.” What he’d finally done, he didn’t know, but whatever it was it had to be better than an evening with the building’s octogenarians cooing over plastic leftover dishes.

“I’m so glad. You’ve been mooning over him for so long. I didn’t think you’d ever get up the gumption to ask him out.”

He realized what she’d been referring to as the elevator dinged and his knock-em-dead gorgeous neighbor stepped out. They’d never actually spoken. Kylo only knew his name, Armitage Hux, because some of his mail had ended up in Kylo’s box once. He’d planned on using it as an excuse to introduce himself, but at the last minute had chickened out, sliding it under the door instead.

“Ah, there you are, Armitage! So glad to hear the news!”

“News? What news?” Hux looked confused, and slightly irritated.

“About your date!” Ms. Kanata crowed.

Hux frowned and Kylo nearly bolted, but then he’d have to admit that he’d lied, so instead he poured all of his desperation into his eyes as Hux threw a puzzled look his way.

“Yes, I was just explaining to Ms. Kanata that I couldn’t go to her Tupperware party Friday because we have plans.” Ms. Kanata’s back was to him, so he mouthed the word _please_ and tried to look as pitiful as possible.

A corner of Armitage’s mouth twitched, and then spread into a full smile. At any other time, Kylo would have melted if Armitage had smiled at him like that, but the current situation had him wound like a watch spring and he wasn’t in any position to appreciate it.

“Ah, yes. Friday. We were going to catch a movie, ma’am. I’m afraid I’ll have to deprive you of his presence.”

Relief washed through him. Kylo felt a bit faint at the force of it. _Thank you,_ he mouthed, and received a slight nod in response.

“Well, for you, dear, I’ll forgo the pleasure of Kylo’s company.” Ms. Kanata favored each of them with a wide smile and continued on her way to the mail room, her cane rapping sharply against the tiled floor.

“Walk me out, will you?” Armitage asked him, in voice loud enough that Ms. Kanata would be able to hear. “I had some thoughts about what we might go see.”

“Um, yeah, sure. See you later, Ms. Kanata.”

“I’m sure you will. Behave, now, you two!”

Armitage started off towards the door at a brisk pace and Kylo had to trot to catch up with him. When they reached the street, he started apologizing immediately. With a raised hand, Armitage cut him off.

“I’m meeting friends for drinks Friday night. I’m sure Ms. Kanata will be hanging around in the lobby to see us off on our ‘date’, but she’s in bed by nine every night so if we leave at the same time, she’ll be none the wiser that we don’t arrive home together. I assume you can find something to amuse yourself with for a few hours on a Friday evening?”

Armitage’s words were brisk and impersonal but there was a twinkle in his eye that suggested he was finding Kylo’s plight amusing.

“Oh, sure, yeah. I always hit the gym on Fridays. Everyone else is out partying so I’ve usually got the place to myself.”

That earned him a frank perusal, green eyes sweeping down the length of his body.

“It looks like you go more than Friday nights.”

Kylo gulped as those eyes completed their evaluation and rose again to meet his. He was spared having to form a reply, as Armitage continued as if he hadn’t just thoroughly checked Kylo out.

“Meet in the lobby at seven? Oh, and I’m Hux, by the way.”

Huh. He went by his last name instead of his first? Well, Armitage was a bit of a mouthful. Hux was staring at him, and Kylo realized he was waiting for Kylo to reply.

“Oh, yeah. I’m Kylo. Nice to meet you!” He put out his hand, giving Hux a bashful smile.

“Nice to meet you too, Kylo.”

Hux’s hand was warm in his, his palm dry. Kylo’s were sweating.

“See you Friday, then.”

And with that he was off, his long legs taking him away from Kylo at a surprising pace. Kylo watched him go, appreciating the way his jeans hugged his ass. It wasn’t creepy to ogle him, Kylo told himself, not with the appraisal he’d just given Kylo. He waved at Hux’s retreating back, then turned to go back into the building. When he reached the door, he swore. He had only been coming down to check his mail, and hadn’t brought his whole keyring.

Shading his eyes, he peered through the glass to see if Ms. Kanata was still in the lobby, but it was empty.

“Fuck.”

He turned to the directory board, scanning the names and trying to remember who he hadn’t bothered recently to let him in.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Friday found him as nervous as he would be if they had a real date. He watched the clock all day, and was out the door two minutes after his shift ended.

He’d brought an extra set of workout clothes and a towel with him when he’d gone to the gym on Wednesday and had left them in his locker so he wouldn’t have to explain a bag away, or meet Hux in the lobby for their ‘date’ dressed in his usual sleeveless tank top and shorts.

That meant that he had to decide what to wear, though. He had to look nice enough that Ms. Kanata wouldn’t comment, but not too nice – not like this was actually a real date.

He started to call Rey and asked for her opinion. When his thumb was poised over the call button on his phone, he reconsidered. If he told her about the predicament he’d gotten himself into, he’d never hear the end of it. That let Poe out too. Scrolling through his contacts, he shook his head, then threw his phone onto the bed in frustration.

“Okay,” he told his closet door. “It’s just you and me. Let’s do this.”

Twenty-five minutes later the entire contents of his closet and half of his dresser were scattered across the bed and floor and Kylo stared in his mirror in frustration. He hadn’t been able to decide if his knit shirts were too clingy, or if one with buttons was too formal. His hair stood up at weird angles from pulling shirts on and off over his head, and he ran his fingers through it, trying to smooth everything down.

“What do you think? I think it’s okay. Do you think it’s okay?” Why was he talking to his closet? “This is ridiculous.” Looking at the mess he’d made, he sighed. It took him almost as long to put everything back again, but he knew if he didn’t do it now, he’d wad everything up and toss it onto the closet floor when he got home.

That left him with enough time to make his pre-workout smoothie, drink it, and wash the blender. He didn’t want to arrive too early and look desperate, but he didn’t want to be late either, since Hux was doing him this favor. Their building had two elevators. Hux must have taken the other one, or he was already down in the lobby.

From the misdelivered mail he knew Hux lived two floors up and one door over from him. He also thought that Hux had a pet, because there had been a catalog for pet products in the mail he’d received. The building allowed cats, and dogs too, as long as they were under twenty-five pounds. Hux didn’t seem like a dog person, though.

The rest of the ride down he distracted himself with picturing what kind of cat Hux would have. Something elegant, he decided, with long clean lines to match his own – an Abyssinian, perhaps, or a Burmese, or maybe a Russian blue.

When the elevator reached the lobby, he discovered Hux had gotten there before him. Ms. Kanata was down there too, as expected. Neither of them noticed his arrival. They were both staring out the front door.

The weather had been the furthest thing from his mind when he’d been getting ready and he tended to keep his drapes closed because his windows faced south so he hadn’t noticed the clouds rolling in. He hadn’t checked the forecast, so the rain caught him off guard.

“That looks nasty. Were you boys planning on walking to the theater?” Their building was only a few blocks away from the mall where the theater was.

“We were, but it looks like we’ll be driving instead,” Kylo said. Their building had a garage in the basement, with assigned spots. They didn’t correspond to apartment numbers, but Kylo knew which one was Hux’s – he’d seen him drive out of the garage one morning in an Audi. “I’ll drive,” he offered, and Hux nodded, then headed for the stairwell.

“I’ll go ahead and call a Lyft.”

“I can drop you wherever you were going to go. It’s no problem,” Kylo said when it looked like Hux was going to protest. “You are getting me out of a Tupperware party, after all.”

“I am, aren’t I? We’re meeting at Put a Cork in it, then. Do you know where it is?”

“I do.” Kylo grinned at the name, while feeling a bit wistful at the same time. The Irish pub had opened a few months ago and he’d been meaning to check it out ever since. Doing so with Hux would have been perfect.

He had to trot to keep up with Hux as they took the stairs down to the basement garage, and he gave thanks for all those hours spent on the Stairmaster at the gym. He hit the remote and Hux’s eyebrows shot up as the Charger’s lights flashed and the car beeped in response.

“I should have guessed that one was yours.”

“Should I guess which one you own?” Kylo asked as they crossed the garage to the car.

“Be my guest.”

“Hmm.” Kylo pretended to think, although he didn’t have to. “I’m betting the Audi A8.”

“Not too hard to guess, is it? Since we are the only two residents under sixty.”

It was true. Besides their two cars, the garage was filled with a combination of old beaters and midrange sedans, with the occasional minivan thrown in.

“I don’t know. That could be yours.” Kylo pointed to the bright orange Volvo with the pictures of cats painted on the sides and grinned as Hux shuddered.

“Hardly the way to repay someone who’s doing you a favor.” Hux tone was sharp, but a smirk pulled at the corners of his mouth.

As they strapped themselves in, Kylo took a moment to take in the sight of Hux in his passenger seat. He looked good there. He looked good anywhere. That had Kylo’s problem from the first time he’d seen him. Realizing he was staring, he tried to cover by adjusting his rearview mirror.

*****

He’d just pulled into the gym’s lot when music started blaring out from under the passenger seat. It surprised him and he nearly dinged a bumper as he was parking. After he’d parked, he ducked down, feeling around under the seat. The phone that he pulled out was most definitely was not his. He had a plain black case and could feel the outline of his in his front pocket. This one was a sleek silver model, super thin, with a picture of a scruffy looking orange cat as the lock screen. As he’d only had one person in his car besides himself in months, there was no question whose it was. He swiped the green button and managed to catch the call before the person on the other end had given up.

“Hi. Hux’s phone. Is this a friend of his?”

There was a pause, and then a woman’s voice answered. “It is. Who is this?”

“I’m one of his neighbors. I gave him a ride tonight and it looks like he dropped his phone before he got out.”

“Well, shit. I was calling to tell him I’d be late.”

There was a strained quality to her voice, as if she was holding back tears.

“Hey, are you okay? I mean, you don’t sound that great. Not that I know what you normally sound like or anything. Sorry. Really none of my business.”

There was a sharp bark of laughter. “No, that’s all right. It’s been a shit week. Well, I guess I’ll see him when I get there.”

“Could you tell him I’ve got his phone?”

“Will do.” She hung up without saying goodbye. The disgruntled cat glared out of the screen at him.

He worked out harder than normal that evening, as he tried not to think what it would be like, out with Hux at the bar, sitting across each other in a booth over a platter of appetizers and a pitcher of beer. He especially tried not to think about the end of the evening, when he could have brought Hux home and seen him to his door.

By dint of extreme exertion, he kept from thinking about what he could have done to Hux outside his door, or maybe even inside of it. That worked while he was awake but his subconscious decided it would be the best thing ever to explore those things in his dreams.

The next morning, he woke with the most extreme case of morning wood he’d had since he was a teenager. Stumbling into the shower he gave in, reliving some of the most vivid images from the night before.

It was too easy to imagine a slim form pressed up against his back and elegant fingers wrapped around his cock. He worked up a lather and began to caress himself with his soap-slicked hand, eyes closed, leaning back against the shower wall. He started off with long, slow, gentle strokes, as if from a tentative hand. As the pressure began to build within, he speeded up his tempo, twisting his wrist as he reached the tip, then sliding back down again. With his other hand he toyed with his nipples, switching back and forth, circling them at first, then pinching, pulling, until they peaked.

He replayed how Hux had said his name. _Kylo._ “Hux,” he moaned in response. His imagination filled in more details – lips sucking at his neck, a hot, hard cock pressing into his ass, how Hux’s skin would flush from the heat and the steam. “Oh, Hux!” _Kylo!_ He imagined Hux’s cock rubbing against his cleft, and ground back against the tile, wishing he’d thought to grab one of his dildos out of his toy drawer before getting into the shower.

Waves of steam flooded his small bathroom as he worked himself into a frenzy. Once he was finished it was a race to finish washing the rest of him before the hot water ran out.

After toweling his body dry, he pulled on his favorite pair of sweats. He needed to retie the string at some point because they barely caught at his hips, but he hadn’t been able to undo the knot. He’d probably have to cut it and rethread the waist, but that was too much trouble. As long as they mostly stayed on, it wasn’t a problem, since he never wore them out of his condo.

Toweling his hair dry as he made his way to the kitchen, he started a pot of coffee brewing. It had just started to percolate when his doorbell rang.

Hux gaped at him when he opened the door, and he realized he should have put on a shirt before answering the door. Or maybe not, considering the flush that crept up Hux’s neck and the way he maintained careful eye contact, not letting his gaze stray downward. He didn’t think he was particularly handsome, but he knew all those hours at the gym had given him an impressive physique.

Hux, on the other hand, looked a little worse for wear this morning. He was still wearing the same clothes from last night. There were circles under his eyes and his usually impeccable hair stuck out at odd angles. It was the cutest thing Kylo had ever seen.

“Phasma said you have my phone?” Hux said without preamble.

 _Good morning to you too,_ Kylo thought, but didn’t say. Instead he asked “How did you know which apartment was mine?”

Hux flushed slightly. His eyes dropped, then widened, and his gaze shot up to meet Kylo’s eyes again.

“A piece of your mail got mixed in with mine. I knew your name already because I’d heard people greet you. It was an ad for hair plugs. You don’t seem to be in need of such services I so recycled it.”

“Um, okay, yeah. Hang on a sec. I’ll grab it. Unless you want to come in? You look like you could use some coffee.”

“No thank you. I was up most of the night and I’m going to go straight to bed as soon as I get back to my place. Phas just broke up with her girlfriend and she went on a bit of a bender last night. I was up taking care of her until three and by then it was easier to crash on her sofa.”

“Okay, hang on.” He’d plugged Hux’s phone in before going to bed last night. Grabbing it from the ledge where all his small electronics rested, he trotted back to the door.

“Here you go.”

It was at that moment that Ms. Kanata emerged from her apartment. She took in the scene – Kylo wearing nothing but sweats and a towel, trickles of water from his hair running down his chest, and Hux still in yesterday’s clothes. From her angle, in the midst of handing off Hux’s phone, it would look like they were holding hands. Kylo watched the gears turning behind Ms. Kanata’s eyes with dread, knowing she’d assume the worst.

Hux’s eyes darted between Ms. Kanata and Kylo and he couldn’t have failed to note the panicked expression on Kylo’s face. A wicked grin flashed across his face, and he leaned in. Although his lips came nowhere near Kylo’s, as Ms. Kanata walked past, it would look to her like he’d given Kylo a goodbye kiss.

“See you around?” Hux asked, and winked before turning and walking down the hall towards the elevator. Well, walking wasn’t really the right way to describe it. Kylo stammered something in reply as Hux gave strutted along. No walk of shame there. As he remembered his shower indiscretion Kylo could feel the tips of his ears burning and knew his face must be bright red. As he watched, Hux offered Ms. Kanata his arm, escorting her to the elevators.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Kylo didn’t see Hux all week, but not for lack of trying. He got up earlier than usual but never managed to catch him in the elevator or the garage. He found excuses to be in the garage in the evening but Hux either didn’t take his car to work that week or didn’t keep normal office hours.

His bad luck held out until that Saturday morning. He’d forgotten to check his mail on Friday, so he swung by the mail room on his back from a jog. With his luck, that’s when he finally ran into Hux again, drenched in sweat and smelling like a locker room. Hux was talking to old Mr. Krennic when he walked in. He thought he’d imagined it at first, that Hux looked happy to see him, but then Hux surprised him.

“Yes, well, I’m sorry I won’t be able to participate in your bridge tournament tomorrow, sir, but Kylo and I have plans. I promised to take him to that new exhibit at the Art Institute.”

“Oh?” Mr. Krennic said. When he caught sight of Kylo, an eyebrow shot up and he smirked at Hux. “Oh. I see. Well, do enjoy yourself, boys. I know I certainly did when I was your age.”

He winked at Kylo as he walked past and that solidified Kylo’s fears. Ms. Kanata had spread the word.

As soon as they had the mail room to themselves, Hux whispered to Kylo, “Sorry about that, but I didn’t think you’d mind, considering.”

“Hey, no problem. Glad I could return the favor.” Kylo was torn between wanting to prolong their conversation and removing his disheveled self from Hux’s presence immediately.

“I’m hoping I’m not inconveniencing any plans for tomorrow,” Hux said, and Kylo seized on the opportunity.

“Actually, I was thinking about checking out the new exhibit myself. The Impressionism one, right?” He tried to keep his expression innocent, not wanting his eagerness to bleed through. A fake date was better than no date, after all.

“Yes. I wouldn’t have figured museums to be your thing.” Hux had locked eyes with him again. Was he always such a direct person, or was he trying not to stare at Kylo’s chest again? He knew he’d sweated through his tee and he could feel how it clung to his torso.

“I’m not just a dumb jock, you know,” Kylo said.

“I didn’t mean …”

“I know. Couldn’t resist though. You should see your face.”

“Asshole.” A wicked grin took the sting out of the insult. “Well, this time I’ll drive.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Hux’s Audi had all the extras and drove like it floated on a cloud. Kylo was a bit jealous. They’d barely made it out of the parking lot when Kylo’s phone rang. Digging out of his front pocket, he groaned when he saw the caller I.D.

“Oh, no.”

“Oh, no, what?” Hux asked.

“It’s second Sunday. I forgot.”

“What happens on second Sunday?”

“My father comes to visit Ms. Kanata, and they have tea, and she fills him in on all the building gossip. And she thinks you spent the night last Friday.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah. Oh. My mother will probably call next. And then my uncles will start.” As soon as the call went to voicemail, Kylo held down the power button until his phone turned off.

“Should I apologize?” Hux asked as he made the turn out onto the road.

“Nah, it’ll all work out.”

A silence followed, not exactly uncomfortable, but not relaxed either. They drove for a few blocks to the muted strains of a classical music station. Casting about for something to day, Kylo decided their museum trip was a safe topic.

“Which is your favorite artist …”

Hux began speaking at the same time. “Why does your father visit …”

They both broke off and Kylo laughed. “You first,” he told Hux.

“All right. Why does your father visit Ms. Kanata every month?” Hux asked.

“She was one of his teachers in high school. They hit it off and they’ve stayed in touch ever since.”

“What did she teach? English?”

“No, shop.”

“Really?” Hux asked in disbelief.

“You should see her picture in my dad’s senior yearbook. She’s wearing these giant welding goggles. Looks like she’s got two fishbowls strapped to her face.”

Hux stared at him for a long moment before bursting out laughing.

“Okay, my turn,” Kylo said. That led to a discussion of their favorite painters that lasted the rest of the way to the museum and continued as they wandered the exhibit.

This was almost a real date, Kylo thought, as they ended up continuing their discussion at a nearby pub.

Hux stuck to one beer so Kylo limited himself to one as well. He did have to work the next day, he reminded himself. The evening played out almost as he’d imagined the past Friday might have gone. Almost. There were no good night kisses in the garage when they returned to the building, no invitations to accompany Hux up to his apartment or intimations that he might like to come with Kylo to his. Instead they took the stairs up to the ground floor again. Hux insisted Kylo go first. Kylo might have put a little extra sway into his hips as he went up, to see if he could get a reaction out of Hux. Once they reached the lobby, it did look as if Hux was a bit flushed, but it could have been because of the climb.

They shared the elevator ride in silence. When the doors opened on Kylo’s floor, he started to say goodbye, then had a stroke of genius.

“Hey, we should exchange phone numbers. In case we need an excuse again when one of us doesn’t happen to conveniently walk by.”

“Good idea,” Hux said. “Here.” He handed Kylo his phone.

Kylo tapped out his digits, and he also put his email in for good measure. The elevator doors tried to close twice, jostling his elbow, but he did not make a typo or drop Hux’s phone. “That is an angry looking cat,” he said as he handed the phone back.

“Wait until you meet her in person,” Hux said, and Kylo’s heart skipped a beat.

“Can’t wait.” The door bumped him again and he stepped out of the elevator with reluctance. “Well, goodnight, Hux.”

“Goodnight, Kylo.”

A little quality time with his favorite dildo before bedtime took enough of the edge off to allow Kylo to sleep that night but he still woke up with a raging erection.

“You need to stop this,” he told his dick, and it bobbed up in down as if in agreement, but still demanded attention.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

His wayward penis didn’t stop him from using Hux as an excuse again two weeks later when Ms. Kanata and Dr. Kalonia tried to rope him into their first monthly bingo night.

“Sorry, but Hux has never seen any of the Marvel movies so we’re going to start catching him up this weekend.

“Oh, I love those! That Sebastian Stan!” Ms. Kanata made a growling noise that would haunt Kylo’s dreams.

“We could play those in the background and you can do both – what a good idea, Kylo!” Dr. Kalonia said and he tried to keep the panic from his face.

“Well, we were kind of planning on making a night of it,” he said, hoping Hux wouldn’t mind the implications. He’s the one that had vamped Kylo in front of Ms. Kanata, after all.

“Ooh! Netflix and chill?” Ms. Kanata winked up at him and Kylo could feel the flush rushing up to his cheeks. “Naughty boy.” She patted him on his arm. “You have been using condoms, haven’t you? Must be safe, you know. How serious are you the two of you getting? Maybe you should get tested. You could go together! It’s a wonderful bonding experience.”

He was not having this conversation with his father’s former high school teacher. This was a bad dream. He was tucked in bed, probably with a high fever, and this was a hallucination.

Dr. Kalonia took pity on him, taking Ms. Kanata by the arm and leading her down the hall. “You’re embarrassing the poor boy, Maz.”

“A little embarrassment is good for the soul, Harter. STDs aren’t. Whatever would I tell your father?”

“Nothing, Ms. Kanata. You don’t have to tell dad anything, okay?” Kylo called out to their retreating backs. He’d been dodging the topic with his family for the past month. The raging fires of gossip didn’t need any more fuel.

 _I just told Ms. Kanata and Dr. Kalonia that we were starting a Marvel movie marathon this weekend_ , he texted Hux.

 ** _I’ll bring the pizza_** _,_ Hux replied.

Kylo blinked in surprise and re-read the text, then grinned.

They ended up at Hux’s place because he had the better sound system. Kylo finally met Hux’s cat. She was the most disreputable cat Kylo had ever seen. She was missing a notch out of one ear and had a stump for a tail. Her fur stuck out at weird angles no matter how much he petted her, and she was voracious about being petted. She croaked instead of meowing and stole mushrooms from his pizza when he wasn’t looking. Kylo fell instantly in love. It seemed like he spent the entire weekend with Millicent in his lap, putting her down with reluctance both evenings when he left to go sleep alone in his own apartment.

Eight movies in one weekend was a bit excessive but Hux didn’t show any signs of slowing down and Kylo took shameless advantage, sneaking looks at Hux as often as possible. He’d opted to go chronologically in the Marvel timeline instead of in order of release, mainly because he wanted to watch Captain Marvel again. He also knew Hux would love Goose.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Several weeks later Hux texted him around lunchtime.

**_I heard Ms. Holdo talking about a classic movie marathon this weekend._ **

**_This actually sounds interesting._ **

**_I was thinking we could take a dive on this one and attend so they don’t get suspicious when we are always unavailable._ **

He didn’t have to think about his response.

_Good idea. I’m in._

Afterwards the panic began to set in. They’d be attending an event in their building as a couple. They weren’t actually a couple. They’d have to sit next to each other. Maybe hold hands, or snuggle. It was going to be torture – excruciating, exquisite torture.

Ms. Kanata had made deviled ham sandwiches again. “Just for you, dear boy,” she said, waving the plate at him as soon as they walked in the door.

Kylo forced a smile and tried not to grit his teeth when he said, “That’s great, Ms. Kanata.”

Hux squeezed his hand in sympathy. Her eyes dropped to their clasped hands and her face split in a terrifying grin. “You haven’t had my deviled ham yet, Hux! I’ll have to teach you to make it. They’re Kylo’s favorite!”

Hux had made a frightening concoction he’d called ‘Orange Fluff Salad’. He’d researched ‘50s desserts, he’d said, since they’d be watching movies from that era. The other attendees had greeted it with glee. That did not improve Kylo’s opinion of the gloppy mess.

“If you ever make deviled ham sandwiches for me, I’m fake breaking up with you,” Kylo whispered to Hux as they settled on the floor on the pillows they’d brought.

“Fakely noted,” Hux whispered back.

Kylo had been expecting VCR tapes and a tiny television and was surprised to see that Ms. Holdo had a digital projector that she’d hooked up to a laptop and a pull-down screen that covered one wall in her living room. She’d even printed up programs. First up was the 1951 Godzilla, followed by The Quiet Man, and then Singin’ in the Rain.

“She’s really mixing it up,” Hux said.

Kylo had been right. The day was pure torture. Hux fed him bits of popcorn and every time his fingers brushed Kylo’s lips it sent little electric shocks straight to his groin. He had to excuse himself halfway through the movie to splash cold water on his face and the back of his neck.

They spent the first movie sitting next to each other but during the intermission Hux rearranged their pillows so he lay in front of Kylo with his head in Kylo’s lap. After a brief hesitation Kylo began to run his fingers through Hux’s hair and he swore Hux purred at the touch.

The last movie for Saturday was War of the Worlds and then they broke for the evening. Day two there were only three movies planned. They started at noon with Cinderella. Hux knew every song by heart, and Kylo caught him humming ‘A Dream is a Wish’ off and on for the rest of the day. Mixing it up again, next was Seven Samurai and they closed with Forbidden Planet, which Ms. Holdo declared one of her top ten favorite movies of all time.

“I never caught the Shakespeare thing before,” Kylo told Hux as the last scene played out.

“Heathen,” Hux retorted, and Kylo threw a piece of popcorn at him.

Stiff from sitting on the floor for so long, Kylo stretched, groaning in relief as his back popped. He thought Hux’s eyes might have dropped to the exposed strip of abs when his shirt rose up, but he might have been checking to see they hadn’t dropped any popcorn.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

After a weekend full of sweets and starches Kylo found himself starving for protein.

“I need a steak. Or at least a burger,” he announced as they waited for the elevator.

“We could hit Bunrise,” Hux said. “You can feed yourself your own French Fries, though.”

The horribly named Bunrise Burgers was a bit of a walk but they both needed it after a weekend of sloth. It was open 24 hours (hence the name) and while it didn’t have the best burgers it didn’t have the worst either.

They’d left Ms. Holdo’s apartments with clasped hands but had broken apart for the elevator ride. At some point during the walk, they’d somehow ended up with fingers entwined again. Kylo pretended not to notice but when someone in a passing car whistled at them, Hux started, dropping Kylo’s hand like it had burned him.

“Sorry! I didn’t realize I was doing that,” he said, the tips of his ears turning red.

“Me either,” Kylo lied. He never wanted anything more than to go find that car and have words with the passenger.

Hux was silent for the rest of their walk but rallied once they’d placed their order. He always got a double with all the fixings, French fries and a milkshake.

“How are you not as big as a house?” Kylo asked

Hux shrugged. “Just lucky. My metabolism is insane.”

Kylo ordered a bacon cheeseburger with onion rings and a beer. He hoped the alcohol would help him sleep that evening. He’d spent too much time that weekend pretending to be lovey dovey with Hux and he felt like he was about to split out of his skin with want.

“I wish she’d shown Rear Window,” Kylo said between onion rings.

“We could watch it next weekend,” Hux said

Kylo’s heart skipped a beat. He almost said ‘it’s a date’ but caught himself in time. “Sounds like a plan,” he said instead.

They spent the next weekend watching more old movies. When Kylo found out Hux had never seen The Ghost and Mrs. Muir he insisted they watch it first. He’d forgotten how it always made him cry. Drawing his knees up, much to Millicent’s dismay, he tried to muffle his sniffles on his arms, but then he heard Hux draw in a wavering breath and looked over to see him red eyed and rubbing his nose on his sleeve.

“Here,” he said, offering the box of Kleenex he kept on the end table. Hux took one without a word, totally caught up in the movie.

“You’re a horrible person,” Hux told him when he finished.

He decided to switch things up for the next movie and pulled up Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein next.

“I love this one!” Hux exclaimed. They ended up switching between Abbott and Costello, The Three Stooges, and Groucho Marx for the rest of the day. Before Kylo knew it, it was midnight. Excusing himself reluctantly, he went back to his place for some restless tossing and turning.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Kylo had forgotten to get his mail on Friday and Saturday so after he’d dragged himself out of bed Sunday morning he headed down to the lobby. He ended up sharing the elevator with Ms. Kanata, yawning the whole way down.

“Another late night, dear?” she asked with a twinkle in her eye.

Great. And it was second Sunday again. Han would get another earful of his pretend escapades. Bracing himself for another flurry of phone calls, he nodded and made what he thought were appropriate noises for the rest of their ride down as she continued to chatter at him.

Right before they reached the lobby she hit him with a question he wasn’t expecting. “When will the two of you quit pretending and admit to each other that you like each other and want to date for real?”

“Probably never.” The admission slipped out on accident and he clapped his hands over his mouth in dismay as the elevator dinged, doors opening up on the lobby!

“Hah! I knew it!” She poked him in his chest with her cane before hobbling out.

“Then why didn’t you say something?” Kylo said, following her out.

“Are you kidding? I haven’t had this much fun in years! And we’ve all been enjoying ourselves, coming up with ideas for you to get out of. It’s brought life back into this old place. Now that we’ve got this out in the open, are there any other misconceptions you’d like to clear up?” she asked.

Since she brought it up, why not, he thought. “Ms. Kanata, I don’t like your deviled ham sandwiches.”

“Finally, you admit it!” she crowed.

“You knew?” he asked

She had the nerve to chuckle. “Of course I did. The faces you make!”

“Why did you keep pushing them at me then?”

“Because you need to stand up for yourself, Kylo. You shut yourself up inside your head and never let yourself think about what you want. It’s not healthy, bottling things up like that. You can’t take it all out on punching bags. Or walls, for that matter.”

“It’s been months since I’ve punched a wall.”

“I know. I haven’t had to bandage you up afterwards. You and Hux are good for each other. Now stop messing around and kiss your boy.”

If only it were that simple.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The next weekend they didn’t have an event to excuse themselves from, but Hux suggested continuing their Marvel marathon and Kylo jumped at the chance. Saturday morning they walked to the corner grocery together to get snacks and when they got back to the building, they found Ms. Secura talking to Mr. Erso in the lobby.

“It looks like my check got lost in the mail, Galen. They said they’d cut me a new one but it won’t be here for five days. What am I going to do? I can’t be late on the rent again.”

“Rent? But ….” Hux began and Kylo cut in.

“I’m sure they’ll understand, Ms. Secura. Just stick a note in the rent box explaining,” Kylo told her, elbowing Hux in the ribs when he started to speak again.

“Are you sure?” Ms. Secura asked.

“I’m sure it will be. Don’t worry, ma’am. It’s going to be okay,” he said, and she sighed, her shoulders sagging.

“You’re such a sweet boy, Kylo. You hold on to this one, Armitage. He’s definitely a keeper.”

Hux shot him a puzzled look but kept his mouth closed and let Kylo drag him into the elevator.

“Rent?” Hux asked as soon as the doors closed. “But I thought this building had been converted to condos?”

“It was going to be, but they don’t know that,” Kylo replied.

“How do you know?”

“Oh, well, I kind of, you know, own the building?” Hux’s eyebrows shot up and Kylo continued in a rush. “Or rather, my foundation does. Well, my grandfather’s foundation. Everyone but us have been living here for decades and when the old owners died their kids were going to evict all the tenants so they could sell it to a company that wanted to turn the building into condos. Nobody knows. Well, except me and my parents and now you.”

“But I bought my unit,” Hux said, confusion wrinkling his brow.

“The old owners did yours as a kind of demo unit, after Mr. Tarkin died. Should I have told you that? He didn’t actually die in his apartment. He was at the hospital. But people get funny about that kind of thing. Anyways, we bought it from them right afterwards, before they signed with the condo developers.”

Hux stared at him as he continued to babble on, mouth agape, but he couldn’t shut off the flow of words.

“My dad found out what the owner was planning somehow. No, I don’t know how and I don’t want to,” he said before Hux could ask. “He’s got ears in places that he’s got no business hearing about. Anyways, he went through the roof. My parents sat down with me and asked if they could use some of the foundation to buy the building. They didn’t have to ask, because it’s really my mom’s inheritance but she never knew her father because her mother had left him and there was some history there and they never said what it was but it wasn’t good so she said she’d never use his money and gave it to me, except it’s still in her name and …”

He had to pause finally because he was running out of breath, except he didn’t get a chance to catch it because suddenly Hux grabbed a handful of shirt and pulled him close, mashing their mouths together. He squeaked in surprise, grabbing Hux by instinct and almost dropping the bag of groceries, and at that moment the elevator dinged.

Kylo had automatically hit the button for his floor even though they were supposed to be going to Hux’s unit. That had been a mistake, as the elevator door opened to reveal that the alcove on Kylo’s floor was full. Ms. Kanata, Mr. Krennic and Ms. Holdo blinked at them in surprise as they froze, caught in a compromising position for real this time, and then all three of them broke out into laughter.

“Ah, spring. All those hormones. I remember those days,” Mr. Krennic said.

“Young love is so wonderful, isn’t it?” Ms. Kanata asked.

Ms. Holdo didn’t say anything, but her expression spoke encyclopedias.

Kylo might have thought of dying in embarrassment if he wasn’t enjoying how Hux remained plastered against him. He did shift his hand upwards, though, so it was more on Hux’s hips and further away from his ass.

“Are you coming out, dears?” Ms. Holdo asked and Kylo blushed.

“Oh, I think they’re already out, Amilyn.” Ms. Kanata cackled at her own joke and Krennic snorted. Kylo blushed even harder.

Hux didn’t blink. “Come along, Kylo. Those movies won’t watch themselves.” Hux let go, which was a crime, but then he took Kylo’s hand, which made up for it. As he led Kylo from the elevator, he switched from holding Kylo’s hand to sliding it into Kylo’s back pocket. A little squeeze made Kylo jump and he heard more laughter from behind them.

“About damned time,” he heard Ms. Kanata say as the elevator doors closed.

That left them standing awkwardly in the hallway with Hux’s hand still in the pocket of Kylo’s now uncomfortably tight pants. Hux didn’t step back, though, or move his hand. “Um. Sorry about that. The kiss I mean. I shouldn’t have … I mean … dammit. I like you, Kylo, and all this pretending to date nonsense has been torture and I’d really like to date you for real and kiss you again and maybe do other things than kiss and … would you please say something?”

Instead of answering with words Kylo pulled him close. Hux’s eyes widened as Kylo leaned in but met his kiss with enthusiasm. He made a little whimper of protest when Kylo stopped, chasing after him, but Kylo put up a hand.

“Maybe we could discuss this someplace, like, not in the lobby?” he said.

“Race you to your place?” Hux replied. Kylo laughed. His door was only a few feet away.

“In three?” he asked. “Three …” and he turned and ran.

“Traitor!” Hux shouted before sprinting after him.

The race was a draw.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

As the early morning light seeped around his drapes a hand slid along his hip, sending shivers up his spine as they brushed against that sensitive spot inside his hipbone. They didn’t stop there. One finger traced the underside of his cock from tip to base and back, and then that hand wrapped itself around him. He could feel himself fill out as the hand caressed him, long, slow strokes that sent soft waves of pleasure through him.

“Mm Hux,” he murmured.

“And a good morning to you, Kylo,” a voice murmured in his ear.

Kylo’s eyes flew open. He wasn’t dreaming. There really was a body pressed up against him in his bed.

“Hux?” he asked, still sleep muddled. “You’re here?”

“Well, yes. You did ask me to stay, remember?”

It was coming back to him now, as various pleasant morning-after aches began to make themselves known. “I thought I was dreaming again,” he said.

“Oh? Do you dream about me often?” Hux asked.

“If I say yes, would that be creepy?”

“I’d have to call myself creepy then too.”

Kylo rolled over, dislodging Hux, who scowled at him before snuggling into his side. “You dreamed about me?”

“More often than I should admit to, yes. What did you dream about?” Hux asked as he began to trace lazy circles around Kylo’s nipple.

“Well, showering together, for one,” Kylo said, biting back a gasp as Hux pinched.

“We could do that,” Hux’s response was muffled, as he’d begun to mouth at Kylo’s other nipple.

“And having sex in the shower.” His cock, which had already begun in response to what he thought was a dream, was now making an impressive tent of the bedsheet.

“We could do that too. Maybe even this morning.”

“Oh really?”

“Yes, I think I could be convinced.”

Hux’s kisses gravitated upwards as his hand wandered south. His lips reached Kylo’s at the same time as he wrapped his hand around Kylo’s cock. Every time they kissed now, ever since that first surprise one in the elevator, had been better than the last. Hux melted against him, tongue teasing against his lips until they parted. He teased at Kylo’s cock with his fingers, feather light touches that set Kylo’s blood afire.

“Hux,” he breathed, and Hux took advantage, delving into his mouth as if to claim him. He’d never been kissed like this before, as if his soul could be drawn out from between his teeth. If they’d gone on like this all morning, he would be happy, but Hux had other ideas.

“Are you sore?” Hux asked.

“Not too sore,” Kylo said.

“Then roll over.”

Kylo obliged, turning over on his side with his back to Hux. He could hear the rustling as Hux retrieved the lube and a condom from his bedside table and then Hux was pressed up against his back again, mouthing at his shoulder.

He’d been wrong about the kisses. Spending the whole morning in lazy wake-up sex was better. Hux seemed content to spend the morning this way as well. He took his time, rocking gently against Kylo, burying himself and then withdrawing almost all the way, then pushing back in until they were flush against each other. His hand caressed Kylo’s cock from base to cock in time with his thrusts, slow strokes that sent waves of pleasure rolling through him. His orgasm build out from his core, radiating out through him and he floated while Hux murmured to him, thrusts increasing in intensity as he lost his rhythm, finishing with a groan as he plastered himself against Kylo’s back. They rolled apart and lay next to each other on the bed, hands clasped.

“Your calendar’s off,” Hux said when their breathing slowed.

It was. Rey had given him a word-a-day calendar last Christmas, because as she’d laughingly told him, “There are other ways to express yourself besides saying ‘fuck’ all the time.” He’d been bad at tearing off each day’s page on a regular basis, normally playing catch up two or three times a month.

“Let’s see what today’s word is,” he said. It took minimal effort to reach it, which was good, because anything else would have been beyond him at that particular moment. He was less than a week behind this time. That was a record where the calendar was concerned.

“June fourteen – ingenue: an artless innocent young girl.” He snorted thinking of the source of the gift. Rey was anything but artless or innocent. He tore off the page and read off the next word. “Sybarite: a person addicted to luxury and pleasures of the senses.” He could become that if Hux kept up this way. “Foible: a minor weakness or peculiarity in someone's character.”

“Do you have any foibles?” Hux murmured into Kylo’s skin before kissing his shoulder.

“Lots,” he replied, going on to the next page. “Sardonic: disdainfully or ironically humorous.” That was a Hux reference there, without a doubt. Hux’s wicked humor was one of the many things Kylo had come to love about him over the last few weeks. “Recursive,” the next page read. “Characterized by repetition. Would you get recursive with me?” he asked.

“Maybe in an hour or two,” Hux said. “More sleep first, and then a shower and breakfast.”

As Hux wrapped himself around Kylo, Kylo tore off the last page. “Temerity - excessive confidence or boldness.” It sounded better to say he’d had the temerity to ask Hux out than to admit he’d been desperate to get out of Ms. Kanata’s Tupperware party and Hux had come along at the right time. Hux could have laughed in his face when he’d first used Hux as an excuse and he’d have been left looking like a fool. So yes, that worked.

Hux’s thoughts had been running in a similar vein to Kylo’s. “I’m glad you had the temerity to tell Ms. Kanata we had a date.”

“Me too.”

“I need to go feed Millicent. We should get that shower, although the sex part might have to wait,” Hux said as they lay there watching the patch of sunlight crawl up the wall. “Next time we should do this in my condo.”

Kylo liked the sound of that. _Next time._

**Author's Note:**

> The recommended list for MCU viewing (for the movies) is [here. There's a separate list that includes the TV shows ](https://thetvtraveler.com/best-order-to-watch-the-marvel-movies-through-2019/)[here](https://www.pocket-lint.com/tv/news/disney/147514-mcu-timeline-best-marvel-movie-show-viewing-order). (If you've got a month or two free.)
> 
> Thanks for reading! If you want to say hi, [check out my profile](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thewightknight/profile) for where I’m currently hanging out on this here internet thing.


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